Top 8 Best Gaming Tablets from Low to High Price Range

With more and more powerful tablets getting released by many manufacturers, then it gives game developers much bigger advantages to finally bring their games to the far new level.
Compared to much older games, many of the newest games that are gonna launch this year and next year will be far more powerful in many aspects, especially graphics.

As you already know, there are many highly-anticipated 3D games that will come out and play in the near coming future.

From the console-quality simulation racing game called “GT Racing 2: The Real Experience” from Gameloft, the zombie shooter game “Dead Trigger 2” from Madfinger Games, the console-adopted Batman Arkham Origins from NetherRealm Studios or Rockstar Games' GTA San Andreas that would be really awesome to play this entire holiday season.

However, not many users can enjoy these HD games on their tablets given that their tablets are not that powerful enough to run those games in full graphics, thus making the games look less attractive to play.

This will surely reduce the gaming experience for many gamers who love to play tablet games.

Thankfully, with the fast and significant technology development on tablet industry, now many manufacturers are not shy anymore to launch more powerful tablets even at affordable price points, without compromising the experience and the performance of their tablets.

If you currently happen to have some big budget that you can spend for a single tablet, you can just pick up iPad Air or iPad mini 2 as these 2 Apple tablets are powerful enough to run any graphics intense games across the App Store.

However, if you are not in good shape financially, you can always steer your target to some Android tablets that are still powerful in specs but affordable in price tags.

Okay then, in this article, i want to give you some of my recommendations for great tablets that i believe have all what it takes to be great gaming tablets and can handle many high-performance 3D games even in the next 2 years.

1. iPad Air

If there is one goal that most of Android tablets are still playing catch up with iPad, then that’s to become an iPad killer.

Despite being the current biggest tablet market share gainer, there are not many Android tablets that have all the complete elements that iPad has until today.

When it comes to design, no Android tablets can touch the elegance of iPad’s design.

When it comes to well-optimized tablet apps, then the amount of Android’s collection of tablet apps on Google Play Store are still catching up with what iPad has today on its App Store.

And when it comes to profits on tablet apps, then iOS developers gain more profits than Android developers.

That’s why, if you’re currently looking for a really powerful gaming tablet that is capable to handle all of the 3D console-quality games perfectly and smoothly with no lag, then iPad Air can be your best choice.

iPad Air comes with Apple’s latest mobile processor, 64-bit A7 bundled with PowerVR G6430 and 1GB of RAM, which can also be found on the latest iPhone 5S and iPad mini 2.

These 3 hardware specs are more than enough to help iPad Air handle any high-performance games on App Store with no lag whatsoever.

What makes this iPad great is its battery life.

Many users experience that iPad Air battery life is just insanely powerful even in heavy hardcore usage, either for gaming all day, watching movies, browsing the web, reading books or anything.

This iPad could even last almost around 2 days in mixed usage.

Well, that’s just outstanding given that this iPad Air delivers an HD Retina Display with 2048x1536 pixel resolution and fast performance to the users.

So if you’re looking for a great gaming tablet that is more than capable to handle even the newest games that are gonna launch next year on App Store, then iPad Air is your best shot.

However, there is something that can be the biggest con when buying iPad Air or any Apple’s iOS devices.

And that’s the future compatibility of games to run on these devices.

As you already know (or not), it’s no secret anymore that every time Apple launches newer models of iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch, many new games on App Store will not be compatible to run on older gen iDevices.

And it’s worsened by the fact that not only 3D games, many simple 2D games that don't require higher end specs and obviously will work perfectly on those devices, suddenly become incompatible with older iOS devices.

Many people already know that this is Apple’s tactic in order to make users upgrade their iPads to the newer models.

So if you’re indeed getting this iPad Air, you must be ready to be disappointed by Apple in the future when the newest games that launch maybe in 2015 will not work anymore with your iPad Air.

2. iPad Mini 2 Retina Display

If there is tablet that can be an iPad killer, then iPad mini 2 is definitely the one I'm talking about.

Similar just like its older brother, this iPad mini 2 also equips itself with the same exact internal hardware just like the iPad Air.

iPad Mini 2 has the same 64-bit A7 processor with 1GB of RAM and PowerVR G6430 GPU on the performance sector, the same Retina Display with 2048x1536 pixel resolution on the screen sector, the same iOS 7 and the same design concept.

However, what makes them different is obviously the size of each iPad. And given that this tablet gets the “iPad mini” name, then it’s no doubt that this model is the smaller version of iPad Air.

However, despite being the smaller model of iPad Air, it doesn’t mean that iPad mini 2 will be become inferior than the iPad Air.

As mentioned above, this year’s iPad mini 2 shares the same exact hardware specs just like the iPad Air.

That becomes the reason why iPad mini 2 is also a great tablet for gaming just like its bigger brother.

In fact, given its smaller size, iPad mini 2 is actually a much better gaming tablet than iPad Air because the size of iPad mini 2 is so perfect and more compact than the regular iPad.

So it makes users feel comfortable when holding it in many hours of usage, especially for gaming or watching movies, even though iPad Air is also really thin and light in weight.

The other thing that also makes the iPad mini 2 a great gaming tablet is its battery life.

Similar just like the iPad Air, Apple states that this mini iPad could last around 10 hours in the heavy usage.

Many users experience that iPad mini 2 is really powerful and could even last more than 1 day in mixed usage.

Therefore, if you’re still looking for the best gaming tablet on the market today, then iPad mini 2 can be one of the best choices for you, especially if you currently have big budget in your pocket right now.

3. Kindle Fire HDX 8.9-inch

It’s so amazing to see how Amazon really takes the tablet industry so seriously when launching its latest Kindle Fire HDX to the market.

Despite being a budget tablet, Kindle Fire HDX blows many high-end tablets out of the water with its mouth-watering powerful specs that surely are capable to fight not just against Google’s tablet, but also the iPad mini 2 and iPad Air.

There is the reason to back up that argument. And that’s of course the internal hardware that are armed on this Amazon’s tablet.

First of all, let’s begin with the performance sector.

Even though this Kindle Fire HDX is priced in mid-end price range, the hardware specs of this tablet can’t be considered as mid-end given that Snapdragon 800 processor, 2GB of RAM and Adreno 330 are 3 highest specs that can only be found on high-end devices, like Samsung GALAXY Note 3, Sony Xperia Z1, HTC One, Samsung GALAXY S4 or GALAXY Note 10 (LTE edition).

In fact, with this type of specs, you can play almost any high-performance 3D games on Amazon App Store perfectly and smoothly without any lag whatsoever.

And that’s already an impressive achievement for Kindle Fire HDX given its price tag that is lower than iPad mini’s $399 price tag.

What makes this tablet even more impressive is its display.

Can you believe that, with only $379, you can have a really powerful tablet with an amazing HD display with the resolution of 2560x1600 pixels plus some great spec sheet and long lasting battery life.

These are already enough for you if you’re planning to use this tablet as media-consumption device for long long hours in the row.

However, compared to the iPad Air or iPad mini, there is one thing that could probably make tablet shoppers steer their target from Kindle Fire HDX to other tablets, like iPads.

And that’s its design.

If you compare the design of iPad mini 2 and Kindle Fire HDX, then it’s not that hard to choose which one that is worth buying.

It’s not only the design of iPad mini 2 that is more superior than Kindle Fire HDX, the price tag of iPad mini 2, which is only $399 for the 16GB model, is definitely not too expensive compared to the price of Kindle Fire HDX 8.9-inches, which is $379.

So with that being said, then iPad mini 2 with Retina Display looks more attractive to buy than Kindle Fire HDX 8.9-inches given that Apple’s mini tablet already comes with the same exact display as Amazon’s tablet, powerful specs, great battery life and most importantly, much bigger collection of well-optimized tablet apps on App Store than Kindle Fire apps on Amazon App Store.

4. Kindle Fire HDX 7-inch

The story above can be a lot different if iPad mini 2 is compared with the 7-inch model of Kindle Fire HDX.

The 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HDX may have the bigger display and much better resolution (2560x1600 pixels) than the 7-inch Kindle Fire HDX that only has the resolution of 1200x1920 pixels.

However, that’s the only thing that makes them different.

When it comes to internal hardware, then Kindle Fire HDX 7-inch is as superior as the 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HDX.

Having been armed with Qualcomm’s latest beast, Snapdragon 800, which is clocked at 2.2GHz per core, accompanied by the same Adreno 330 and 2GB of RAM, then Kindle Fire HDX 7-inch is amazingly fast just like its bigger brother.

But one thing that makes the 7-inch model more attractive for tablet shoppers than the 8.9-inch model is definitely its price tag.

Compared to its bigger brother, Kindle Fire HDX 7-inches is only priced at really affordable $229, while the 8.9-inch model will cost you $379, $20 lower than the iPad mini 2 Retina Display.

Therefore, if you currently don’t have big budget in your tight pocket, instead of getting Kindle Fire HDX 8.9-inch or iPad mini 2, then you can steer your target to the smaller 7-inch Kindle Fire HDX.

Even though it has much lower display and resolution, it’s still packing the same internal hardware that come with the 8.9-inch model of Kindle Fire HDX.

So you’ll make no mistake when getting this tablet.

As i mentioned above, with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 800 processor, Adreno 330 GPU and 2GB of RAM, then Kindle Fire HDX 7-inches is one of the BEST gaming tablets all across the market to date.

So even though this device gets the low-end price tag, you don’t ever need to worry as almost any high-performance 3D games on Amazon App Store like Dead Trigger 2, GT Racing 2, FIFA 2015 or even next year’s Modern Combat 5, GTA San Andreas or N.O.V.A 4 can be played smoothly and perfectly on this Kindle Fire HDX 7-inch.

No doubt about that.

5. Google Nexus 7 (2013 edition)

Similar just like the 7-inch Kindle Fire HDX above, the latest edition of Google Nexus 7 can also be considered as one of the best gaming tablets that you can get on the market right now.

What makes this Google’s tablet amazing is absolutely its price tag.

By paying only $229 for the 16GB model of Nexus 7, you can have a really solid and powerful gaming tablet that is more than capable to handle many high-quality 3D games on Google Play Store in buttery smooth performance.

Even though this tablet is only armed with Qualcomm’s last year flagship chipset, it doesn’t mean that the performance of Google Nexus 7 will be inferior than Kindle Fire HDX, which has Qualcomm’s latest flagship, Snapdragon 800.

In fact, the performance of Google Nexus 7 can be considered as great just like the Kindle Fire HDX, although Amazon’s tablet definitely has more advantages than Google’s tablet given its powerful chipset.

However, what makes Google’s offering is more attractive than Amazon’s device is definitely its user experience.

Compared to Kindle Fire HDX that is installed with Amazon’s homemade Fire OS (based on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean), Google Nexus 7 comes with Google’s stock Android software, which means, you can add widgets, shortcuts, apps or anything on the homescreen, unlike Kindle Fire HDX that doesn’t allow any of those features.

This surely makes Google’s tablet look more attractive to buy than Amazon’s offering, especially since on Kindle Fire HDX, you’re not allowed to customize the homescreen and theme of the tablet, unless with custom ROM from XDA forum’s developers.

So this kind of makes the experience of using Amazon’s tablet less interesting than on Google Nexus 7.

If you’re type of users who really love to customize the user interface of your tablet, then Google Nexus 7 is a much better choice than Kindle Fire HDX.

Amazon’s tablet may have the latest beast from Qualcomm.

However, given that Google Nexus 7 has the same exact specs just like Amazon’s tablet, like the same display and resolution and the same amount of RAM, plus much better UI customization, then it’s no brainer to choose Google’s tablet instead of Kindle Fire HDX.

However, if you’re type of users that doesn’t really care with UI customization, widgets on homescreen, and you just want to enjoy all the latest contents and apps directly from Amazon’s service, then you should definitely pick Kindle Fire HDX instead.

It has much better CPU and GPU, plus it’s already integrated perfectly with Amazon content and app ecosystem, making it a lot easier for you to enjoy all the latest movies, TV series, books, apps, music and any kind of content without any hassle.

Besides, whenever you feel bored with the UI of Kindle Fire HDX, you can always visit XDA forum and ask the developers there to help you install the custom ROM for your tablet.

6. Tegra Note

Besides Kindle Fire HDX and Google Nexus 7 that are already perfect and powerful as gaming and media-consuming tablets, there is also another great gaming tablet but really affordable to buy.

It’s called Tegra Note which is made by no other than the maker of Tegra mobile chipset itself, NVIDIA.

Tegra Note may not have the display resolution as high as Google Nexus 7 or Kindle Fire HDX, however this device can also be a great alternatives for 2 tablets above as this NVIDIA’s reference tablet comes with some great features that just can’t be found on those Google and Amazon’s tablets.

First of all, let’s focus on the spec sheet of this tablet.

Tegra Note comes with a 7-inch display sporting the resolution of 1280x800 pixels, which is lower than the displays of Nexus 7 or Kindle Fire HDX that use 1080p screens.

However, that doesn’t mean that this NVIDIA’s tablet is inferior than those rivals.

On the performance sector, Tegra Note is armed with NVIDIA’s latest beast Tegra 4 clocked at 1.8GHz, accompanied by 1GB of RAM and 72-core GPU.

Well, that’s quite impressive though given that its $199 price tag seems really cheap for a powerful tablet with those high-end specs.

With this type of hardware specs, then it’s no doubt you can run and play many games on Google Play Store, even the most graphics intensive games like Modern Combat 5, GT Racing 2, Asphalt 8, Need for Speed: Most Wanted, GTA games, Dead Trigger 2 or any other games that will launch next year or even in the next 2 years.

And the great thing is, you can play them all in full graphics with stunning visual effects in buttery smooth performance.

Buy you may wonder, “what’s so great about Tegra Note that makes it better alternative than the $229 Google Nexus 7 or Kindle Fire HDX?”.

Well, by paying only $199 for this Tegra Note tablet, first of all, you're gonna get a microSD card slot, which can’t be found on those 2 rivals.

You will also get its official stylus just like S-pen on Samsung GALAXY Note, which you can use it to do some professional drawing or painting right away on your tablet.

This “DirectStylus”, which NVIDIA calls it, also comes with some dedicated apps and features on the Tegra Note, making it more useful for users in the daily usage.

This is also the reason why Tegra Note can also be a great alternative if you just can't afford the Samsung GALAXY Note 8.

Tegra Note comes pre-installed with Android Jelly Bean (not sure which version that comes with it) and it’s equipped with a 4100mAh battery, which means you can have a solid all day battery life with this tablet in mixed usage.

However, just like Nexus 7 or Kindle Fire HDX, the battery life of Tegra Note may only last about 7 or 9 hours if you’re using it for gaming, watching movies or some heavy activities in marathon.

But that’s good enough given that this device is only priced at $199, a really decent price tag for a solid and powerful tablet like this.

7. Sony Xperia Tablet Z

There are many other tablets that are also powerful for gaming. Sony Xperia Tablet Z is one of the tablets that is worth recommending given its competitive high-end specs among other rivals on the market right now.

Well, these are already considered as great specs for gaming given its powerful internal hardware and great battery capacity.

As mentioned above, this Sony’s tablet is using Qualcomm’s second flagship chipset of this year, Snapdragon 600, which is lower than the real flagship chipset, Snapdragon 800.

However, that doesn’t mean that the whole performance and experience of this device will be laggy and less powerful for gaming.

As a matter of fact, with the support of Adreno 320 GPU and 2GB of RAM, it’s already enough for this tablet to play even the high-performance games all across Google Play Store so smoothly and perfectly.

And i totally believe this tablet will still be more than capable to run any 3D games even in the next 2 years ahead.

The other thing that makes this tablet so great for gaming is the battery life.

With its 6000mAh battery capacity, you don’t need to worry anything about recharging this tablet during the day as this tablet could probably last more than a day, of course in mixed usage.

However, in heavy usage like for gaming, watching movies or browsing the net, you can expect this tablet to last less than 8 or 10 hours.

But that’s already a great achievement given that Sony Xperia Z can deliver such an outstanding performance in Full HD 1080p display. So you’ll make no mistake when buying this tablet.

However, given that the specs of this device are so powerful and the it has premium design, then you must be paying more in order to snatch this tablet.

With all of the goodies like 1080p display, quad-core Snapdragon 600 CPU, Adreno 320 GPU, 2GB of RAM, 8.1MP camera and 6000mAh battery life, Sony Xperia Tablet Z will cost you more than $400 for the smallest 16GB storage.

The good thing is, you can always expand the storage of this device with its external microSD card, making sure that you can cramp all of your favorite media files into this tablet.

8. Lenovo 10 Yoga Tablet

To be honest, i actually just heard about this tablet a few days ago, to be exact, when i saw the review of this tablet on my YouTube video subscription feed.

And I’m a bit amazed with this tablet actually, especially with its awesome design.

If you take a look at the bottom part of this Lenovo tablet, you will see a really unique hinge that later can be used as a kick stand for the tablet, similar like what Microsoft Surface has on the bottom area on its back.

However, the hinge of Lenovo 10 Yoga tablet is much better than the one on Microsoft’s tablet.

It’s designed uniquely with a rounded shape that it’s not fully rounded, making it stable when being used as a kick stand.

On the back around that hinge, you’ll also find the similar prop just like on Surface tablet, which also helps hold the tablet when it’s being used in desktop position.

And the great thing about this tablet is its price point.

With only $300, you can get a solid built tablet that comes with a great design and some awesome specs, like a 10.1-inch 1280x800 pixel screen, a quad-core Mediatek MT8125 Cortex A7 CPU, PowerVR SGX 544 GPU (the same GPU on the iPhone 5), 1GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, 9000mAh battery and many more.

However, with that being said, then this tablet is gonna have a tight competition among mid-end tablet market given that other tablets may have much better specs but at slightly cheaper price tags.

Luckily, the good thing that could probably make this tablet stand out among rivals is definitely its battery life.

Having been equipped with a gigantic 9000mAh battery capacity, then as the owner, you will be extremely happy as this tablet could probably last around 2 days or so.

As a matter of fact, according to many reviewers, Lenovo 10 Yoga Tablet proved has so much even better battery life than any other Android tablets on the market to date.

That’s a quite achievement given that most tablets usually only last in day in one single charge, with the exception of iPads.

So to sum this up, by paying only $300, you’ll get a pretty great display (1280x800 pixels), an amazing design with rounded stand, solid performance with Mediatek quad-core CPU, PowerVR SGX 544 MP3 (just like on the iPhone 5) and 1GB of RAM and a great battery life (that is better than any other Android tablets out there).

There you go. It’s up to you now.

Are you willing to hand over your $300 for this tablet?

Conclusion

Well, there you go, some of the top powerful tablets that i really believe will be such great tablets for gaming.

As you can see at all the hardware on those amazing tablets above, most of the specs are always around a quad-core CPU, 1/2GB of RAM and some powerful GPUs, either Adreno or PowerVR GPU on iPads.

This is the reason why those tablets are so powerful for gaming and will still be capable to play any high-performance games even in the next 2 years ahead.

So if you’re still looking for a great and powerful tablet that you can use all day long for gaming, plus for watching movies, browsing the net or listening to music, then you can just choose one of those tablets above.

However, if you’re not in really great shape financially but wanting to get a great gaming tablet at affordable cost, then my recommendations are between Google Nexus 7, Kindle Fire HDX or Tegra Note.

Despite having some low-end price tags, you must never underestimate all of these 3 tablets though.

They are still really powerful for gaming and i totally believe they are more than capable to play many 3D games that are gonna launch in the next 2 years.